SUFFOLK COUNTY, N.Y. – Faustino Cruz-Marquez, 26, of Manorville, has recently pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter during the third day of his jury trial. Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced that Cruz-Marquez is expected to be sentenced to 13 years in prison, with five years of post-release supervision.
The case involved the killing of 37-year-old Maria Carmelina Velasquez-Zhau at Cosmos Farm in Manorville, where both the victim and defendant resided and worked. According to the investigation, Velasquez-Zhau was last seen on July 28, 2020, engaged in a physical altercation with Cruz-Marquez over damaged produce. The following day, Velasquez-Zhau’s body was found in a wooded area on the outskirts of the farm, and the cause of death was determined to be homicidal violence, consistent with strangulation.
District Attorney Tierney stated that justice has been served now that Cruz-Marquez has taken accountability for his crimes and will no longer put the victim’s family through any more pain throughout a trial.
